Help help help! 8 month old forcefully refusing solids after LOVING them

i have a 2 year old who had sounds just like your child, when he started solids he loved everything and ate loads, then suddenly one day he had a sick bug and after that wouldn't eat, when he finally did eat he was very fussy not touching anything hardly, i have had this problem on and off since he started solids but i did notice that he was teething alot of the time, because he had a awfal mood on him when he was off his food, believe me us mums are all with you on this matter, because we all i am sure have either had a child who wont eat or wouldnt eat at one time, i also have a 6 yr old who is the fussiest kid in the world, and one on medication for adhd so makes her not want to eat, its awfal, i always find if i leave little snacks around they will eventually eat them.there will be something that as stopped her/him from eating you just got to find the root of the problem, xx

It might be teething. We found 'bread lollies' were great for spoon-strikes - fingers of frozen bread straight out of the freezer. They soothe gums and give them something to chew on that's actually edible.

It does sound a bit like teething. DD teethes madly and is off her food, bar 4m+ jars (because she can pretty much drink them) about 3 or 4 weeks before the teeth actually show themselves. The upset to the tummy plus the sore mouth can really put them off food.

I would keep offering solids, maybe soft finger foods in his highchair, and don't make a fuss of it at all. If he takes some that's great, if not, don't stress. Up the milk a little if he needs it because of night wakings, but not before feeds so he is hopefully still hungry when solid food is put in front of him.

It's horrible when they go off their food but generally they do go back to it, especially if you can manage not to make a stress of it. It's taken a lot of work for me to not make a stress of it, but DD is obviously a child who goes off her food easily. She goes back on to it after a while, and then generally we have a day or two where she will eat anything that doesn't move because she's that desperate for solids.

Good luck. Try not to stress too much - if he has milk and plenty of water he will be fine.

Have you tried letting him suck food out of the little pouches you can buy? DD wasn't keen on a spoon, but loved the Ella's pouches, probably because they were the food equivalent of a bottle. The fish pie one made her smell rather fishy.

Just when you think you got something sussed they do something different, aren't babies great

Try giving him some ibuprofen half an hour before his lunch tomorrow and see if that improves his mood. Other things to try are a cool, clean wet flannel to chew on and chunks of cool cucumber or a frozen banana (if the little sod one will take them )

Have you tried offering the milk an hour before the solids too? Some babies can get very hungry and don't understand that the solids fill them up. If he's already had his milk and then refuses solids you can just both go and do something else. It will stop him associating refusing solids with being given something more yummy

The green poos could indicate teething or a virus. Teething, as the excess saliva that's swallowed causes the upset tum. Also, teeth can take weeks to come through. It's not unusual for babies to feel teeth coming through the jawbone several weeks before they erupt. Some days more so than others. A sudden yelp and pain in the late afternoon and evening are classic signs.

Don't cause unnecesary stress. Offer a variety of soft cold foods e.g. slices of watermelon, mango etc. talk to your health visitor. There are some great food ideas in the baby led weaning website and books.

My DS, more or less 8 months old, has decided to refuse all solids with what can only be described as total melt-down of the red-faced, hysterical tears and back-flip variety.

I can quite understand that babies are unpredictable, lord alone knows it's been a total nightmaresoul destroyinghorrific a challenge to get to this stage, but just when I thought I could be perhaps (whispers) be starting to get this, it all starts going wrong.

He was enthusiastically scarfing down everything I offered him, puree wise. He's never really wanted finger foods; although I have provided them, he kind of looks at me like I'm offering him glass-encrusted wooden spikes or arsenic, prods at them and stuffs his toys in his mouth instead.

Now all he wants is his bottle, and he's gone from 3 meals a day and milk feeds to entirely milk feeds. The GP has checked him out and there is nothing overtly wrong; I took him along as the only other thing that seems notable is that his nappies contain toxic waste - green, chemical smelling, runny & explosive poops that have turned his peachy bum into a red and macerated wasteland. A couple of friends have intimated teething, but I can't see any signs of them; could teething be the cause of this solid-strike?

Also, the crux of the question, what should I do for the best? Leave the solids completely and not even try? Although it's killing me, when he refuses I just say 'ok', and give him milk. I don't make an issue of it at the time, but I do shed bitter and lonely tears when he's in bed. Or should I continue to offer them? I just don't want him to associate feeding with heartbreak, and the original cause of this issue to be well over, but have him continue the same pattern through association.

If you could offer some wise words, I'd be grateful. Has this happened to you, and how did you manage it?